Help With Personal Statement

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dentisthopefull

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Hello everyone. I am new to student doctor network. I am applying for the next cycle and will hopefully apply early. With regard to the personal statement I had a few questions. I have had to deal with some health problems during my life that are not curable and have to deal with some pain everyday. Do you think it would be a good idea to mention this in my personal statement? I have heard different advice from different people. Some people say telling the admissions committee about health problems might put doubt in their minds that I can handle dental school while dealing with a chronic illness. I do not want to say what health problems I have for privacy reasons but it does not effect my hands for doing dental surgeries and I try not to let it effect my motivation for studying. Also my 3 top choices for schools would be UCLA, UCSF and Loma Linda. For UCSF and UCLA do you think it would be a good idea to do research as an undergrad? Sorry for the long post and thanks for the advice. My overall GPA is 3.6 and my science GPA is 3.5. I have a score of 20 on all sections of the DAT except PAT which is 18.

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Your DAT is pretty good.

Research is always a good idea.

I also had lots of struggles growing up and mentioned it in 2-3 sentences in the opening essay but then described what I've learned from my experiences. Don't focus on your life too much, just focus on why dentistry and what makes you unique and how will you succeed in school. Prove it by your accomplishments.
 
Hello everyone. I am new to student doctor network. I am applying for the next cycle and will hopefully apply early. With regard to the personal statement I had a few questions. I have had to deal with some health problems during my life that are not curable and have to deal with some pain everyday. Do you think it would be a good idea to mention this in my personal statement? I have heard different advice from different people. Some people say telling the admissions committee about health problems might put doubt in their minds that I can handle dental school while dealing with a chronic illness. I do not want to say what health problems I have for privacy reasons but it does not effect my hands for doing dental surgeries and I try not to let it effect my motivation for studying. Also my 3 top choices for schools would be UCLA, UCSF and Loma Linda. For UCSF and UCLA do you think it would be a good idea to do research as an undergrad? Sorry for the long post and thanks for the advice. My overall GPA is 3.6 and my science GPA is 3.5. I have a score of 20 on all sections of the DAT except PAT which is 18.
I can read your personal statement if you want and give you ideas. PM me and I'll be glad to help.
 
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